BRENDA O’FARRELL
The 1019 Report

The town of St. Lazare’s campaign to sensitize residents to respect rules and regulations launched earlier this year has attracted a limited online audience.

The campaign, which produced four 20- to 40-second videos, cost taxpayers more than $12,000. Three of them feature Québécois actor Richard Fréchette, who plays a fictional character known as “Monsieur Lazare.” The character is a “grumpy citizen,” according to the municipality’s own description, “an egotistical man in his 60s” who thinks he does not have to respect municipal regulations.

The short videos were produced by YouTube comedic filmmaker Thomas Bédard.

The videos have received only 348 to 454 views each on the town’s channel on the video platform. They are only in French.

City officials claim they created the Monsieur Lazare character and videos “to promote responsible behaviour for the collective good.”

The videos advocate for the responsible use of potable water by not cleaning your driveway by hosing it down, adhering to posted speed limits on the streets, treating personnel at detour points caused by roadwork with respect and reducing the use of pesticides on lawns.

“The short stories created with Monsieur Lazare are based on anecdotes experienced by Ville de St. Lazare employees,” the town claims in a statement.

Fréchette, who is more widely known in the French-speaking community having starred in the popular TV show La Petite Vie on Radio-Canada in the 1990s, billed the city $862 for his appearances, while Bédard charged just over $11,000 to produce the four videos, including $2,750 for other actors and $800 for a make-up artist, according to information obtained from the town by The 1019 Report.

Municipal officials have not announced whether more videos in the series will be produced.